Developer to build affordable rental housing for essential healthcare workers
LOS ANGELES: A developer is to be offered a sweetener to build affordable housing for essential healthcare workers.
Sutherland Shire Council will aim for five per cent of all new housing approvals over the next 20 years to be affordable housing for essential workers paying reduced rent.
The council decided at its November 21 meeting on a range of measures to be included in the draft Local Housing Strategy 2041, but they will need to be confirmed prior to exhibition.
Measures include giving developments that include affordable housing a height bonus, as well as extra floor space, with further work to be undertaken on appropriate locations.
An Affordable Housing Contributions Scheme, in which developers either include affordable housing in their project or pay a contribution to help fund others, is another element. Details are still being worked out.
More lenient parking requirements and a community education campaign are other measures.
The council adopted a five per cent target after an earlier proposal of 10 per cent was considered unachievable.
At present, only three per cent of new dwellings are affordable rental housing although an increasing number of large developments appear to be embracing the concept. For example, 50 per cent of gross floor area in the 131-apartment Caringbah Greens development to be built on the site of Caringbah Bowling Club, will be allocated for affordable rental housing.
Cr Stephen Nikolovski, who moved the staff recommendation, which was unanimously supported, said the shire was not like other areas where councils had large landholdings, which could be used for such housing.
“I think we need to take some baby steps,” he said.
Several shire church and community groups, which have been pushing for council action on the issue, were represented at the meeting.
The groups, which are members of the Sutherland branch of Sydney Alliance, include Engadine Uniting Church, Vinnies Sutherland, St John Bosco Social Justice Group, Holy Family Menai, Gymea-Miranda Uniting Church and Project Youth.
“We consider the council resolution to be first steps, not last, and the aspirations to be a floor not a ceiling,” they said in a statement.
“We will continue to support any progress being made towards that goal and to campaign against any dilution or corruption of the report recommendations.”
They called for education of councillors and the community on the distinction between affordable rental housing and social housing, and to counter “false labelling” of the developer contribution scheme as a tax.
“It is a fair contribution to the community in exchange for the extra burdens wrought by higher-density development,” they said.